Always Keep a Promise
by RaidingTombs
Summary: How could a simple journey, a first adventure go so wrong. Sam and Lara both have to face many difficult trials on Yamatai: an unstable cult leader, his crazy killer followers, rescues and sacrifices, and of course, their feelings for each other. Follows parts of the game with some twists. Lara x Sam story
1. Ch 1 The Ritual of Flames

**So this is my first story, and I decided to start it where Mathias is about to perform the fire ritual on Sam and go from there. I do not own anything Tomb Raider sadly. Sorry for any mistakes. Hope you enjoy and feel free to review. Warning: spoilers from game.**

_Sam's perspective_

A few months ago, if someone were to ask me how I thought I was going to die; I definitely would not have responded by being stranded on an island, with a lunatic cult leader and his demented followers. The same unstable leader who wanted to have me burnt at the stake, to see if I was the sacrifice they have been looking for. Yeah, sounds crazy right, but it was happening. I was currently tied tightly to a giant log, set up like a fire pit in some underground cave or something. I was also gagged with some old piece of cloth, which was itchy and smelt funny. Along with all of this, I was surrounded by the wacko followers and their screwball leader, Mathias.

I was absolutely terrified, since burning to death was not the way to go. I had so much I still wanted to do with my life, so much to live for, however, none of that mattered at the moment. There was only one thing…one person that was on my mind, my best friend Lara Croft. Lara…she really is something else, and for some stupid reason I was only now realizing, how amazing she truly is. There are just so many things that I love about her. I love her smile, her laugh, and that she is the complete opposite of me. I was the party girl and she was the bookworm, yet, we got along great.

I smiled to myself just thinking about our college days. There were so many good memories, even though Lara had her nose stuck in a book half the time. That is another thing that I love about her though, the way she gets lost in a book. Not that I am any better when it comes to filming. I honestly love to film, even though Lara used to hate me filming her, until she realized I always had a camera on. I could never understand why though. I mean she is super attractive with an amazing figure. That was it though, because now I have come to realize what I was feeling for her was beyond attraction. I just wasn't really sure what it was, and now, I would probably never get the chance to figure out these feelings.

Dammit, I can't believe I was gullible enough to trust this guy. This was entirely my fault, and now here I am, of course still holding out hope that Lara will rescue me in time. If anything, at least I got to hear her voice one last time. I had managed to steal a radio off of one of the guards. It was pretty terrifying but totally worth the chance to speak to Lara. I would just have to hold onto that, just focus on her voice, her promise. Before my thoughts could continue, Mathias began to speak to his followers.

"My brothers listen to me now. Out in the world, we were nothing. But here…here we are the Solarii, the Sun Queen's children. She brought us here for a reason. I know you want your freedom." The other men began to shout excitedly. Mathias continued, "I know you want to escape this place. But to do so, we must release our Queen. Like us, she is a prisoner. If we can free her, we free ourselves! This girl… she carries the blood of this land. She could be the key."

Okay, so part of that was true, I was technically related to Himiko, but this, this is insane. I struggled against the binds, the gag muffling my screams, it was useless.

Mathias turned to face me, with his creepy staff raised above his head as he shouted, "The Ritual of Flames will show us the truth!"

Great, just great, this was it, the crowd began to roar and some guy with a torch headed towards us. My heart was racing and my head was spinning, I might have been sick actually, but I did my best to focus on Lara, on the memories I had with her.

Mathias gestured to the torch guy and turned to face his followers, "Himiko, you are the first and the last…Speak to us now!"

I squeezed my eyes shut and tried to ready myself for the pain. Nothing happened and then there was a gurgled sound of pain. My eyes snapped open, Lara had her bow raised, preparing another arrow. She had taken out the torch guy, and she was here, keeping her promise! I felt my heart racing again, but this time was for a whole other reason. I struggled against the ropes again, and muffled sounds came out of my mouth. Then it hit me, Lara was gravely outnumbered and attempted one more shot missing Mathias by inches. The others had reached her at this point, tackling her to the ground. I screamed against the gag, oh God, Lara no please no.

The men started kicking and hitting her, and I couldn't do anything to stop it. This was it, it was over and it was tearing me up inside. Just as I thought all hope was lost, Mathias started to shout at his men, "Enough! Dmitri, Nikolai! Bring her to me!"

The men took Lara's weapons and roughly dragged her to her feet, over to Mathias. As they made their way over I tried to get loose again, I felt so helpless. The men had stopped just in front of Mathias, who proceeded to put his filthy hand and pull back Lara's drooping head. She was not looking to good, cuts, bruises, and dirt covered her body and all I could think was this was my fault.

Mathias proceeded to speak before I could blame myself any further. His voice seemed almost too calm for the current situation, "Every creature in nature will turn and fight when its very survival is at stake. So don't think I don't understand you girl. I've just been doing this a lot longer." He dropped Lara's head and turned to face his followers, "Ready yourselves brothers." He reached for another torch, "Our Queen is about to speak!"

With all the commotion and Lara showing up, I had completely forgotten about the whole being sacrificed thing. It was like everything slowed down, except my heart which hadn't stopped racing from the beginning. I started to panic, muffled shouts came out of my mouth and I struggled to get lose. I knew it was pointless, but didn't Mathias just say that every creature fights for their survival, even when it was hopeless.

Mathias screamed even louder now, "Speak to us! Himiko!"

My short life flashed before my eyes, I was going to die, in front of my best friend, someone who I loved so much. I could hear Lara shouting over all the noise, "Sam!" Mathias dropped the torch onto the pit. Lara continued to shout, "No, no, no, Sam!" Her voice sounded strained to me as she watched the scene in front of her.

Mathias roared to his followers and at the mythical Himiko, "Speak to us through the flames!"

I tried to scream, struggle, anything to get me out of this situation. This had to be a really terrible nightmare, right? I tried closing my eyes and counting to three and of course nothing happened. This was real, and I could already feel the flame's heat on my legs. Just as I was about to lose it, Lara's voice rung out, "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry. Just look at me…look at me, okay?"

I immediately made eye contact with her, and I could see it in her eyes that she blamed herself for this. Oh Lara, this wasn't your fault, please don't blame yourself, I thought. I could also see how much she truly cares about me, and I didn't want it to end. I thought this was it, but before the flames could catch onto the fabric of my pants, a huge gust of wind came out of nowhere and put out the flames. It was completely draining, and I was suddenly so tired. What the hell was that, it felt like I was about to pass out. My body started to lower itself against the log on its own accord.

I barely heard what Mathias was saying because my ears were still ringing, "She…she's the one. Soon my brothers… we will be reborn! Take her to the throne room."

The throne room again, but Lara, what was he going to do with her. I struggled to stay awake, and I could hardly comprehend what was happening. I saw a blurry vision of Mathias turn to Lara and say, "Your fight is over creature."

I made eye contact with Lara one more time before my world started to spin and everything went black.


	2. Ch 2 The Ritual of Flames (Lara)

**So I wasn't sure if I was going to do this, but then I thought why not. Basically this is the first chapter but from Lara's perspective. Hope you enjoy and thanks for any reviews! Sorry for any mistakes.**

I emerged from the water into the cavern entrance of the palace. My heart was still racing, as I recalled the last few minutes. How could so much have happened? I could hardly wrap my mind around it. Grimm…Grimm was dead, sacrificing himself so that I could keep going. Along with that, crossing that bridge was terrifying, but Roth was an amazing shot. That last one though, was too close for comfort. I can still feel his disgusting breath against my ear,

_"I'll break this girl's neck! Surrender!" _

Roth had taken the shot, and I could still feel the bullet whizzing by and hitting the man threatening me. Thank God for Roth. I honestly don't know what I would do without him. Right now though, I couldn't worry about any of it. I had made a few promises that I needed to keep, one being just a few minutes ago.

"_Are you sure about this Lara?" _Roth asked with concern, checking to see that I was completely sure about going in and rescuing the others.

"_I'll get them. I'll come back I promise."_ I responded with complete determination. I had to find the crew, save them so Grimm's sacrifice wouldn't be for nothing. I also needed to find Sam and keep that promise as well. Oh Sam, I could easily recall our last conversation, as if it had also just occurred.

_Flashback_

I had just finished escaping the Oni's lair, and I was honesty just done. I was so exhausted I thought, as I crawled out of the water and onto a small piece of land. I collapsed and closed my eyes, needing a few minutes to just wrap my head around everything. Just as I was about to drift off, the radio went off.

"Hello? Hello?"a familiar voice spoke through the radio and I immediately sat up.

"Sam!" I said to myself with excitement. Thank God she's alive.

"Hello?" Sam asked again sounding scared.

"Sam, it's Lara!" I answered happily, knowing that she was still breathing.

"Oh god, Lara…it's good to hear your voice." Sam responded with sincerity.

"Yours too, Sam. Is the rest of the crew with you?" I asked her, hoping that everyone was still safe.

"No, I just managed to steal this radio off a guard." Sam sounded anxious.

"A guard?" Why was Sam being guarded, I wondered?

"I've been kidnapped." Sam stated and I felt my heart drop to my stomach.

"What? Where are you?" I started to panic now.

"I don't know… some Japanese palace. They keep talking about a "fire ritual." Lara, I'm fucking terrified. Shit, someone's coming. I've got to hide this thing." Sam said panicked.

"Sam…Sam!" I screamed into the radio, begging to hear her voice one more time. I immediately stood up, and started to head out of this cave. Sam…I had to find her, save her, she means so much to me. I can't lose her, what did she mean by fire ritual? Like the mural in Himiko's tomb? After a few minutes of walking and taking out a few more men, the radio went off again.

"Oh god, that was close. Are you there?" Sam asked hopefully, but she still sounded anxious.

"I'm here, Sam. Are you okay?" I responded quickly, my voice laced with concern.

"What do they want with me, Lara? A fire ritual? This is so fucked up!" Sam spoke completely shaken.

"Listen. I'm coming to get you. I'm going to get you out of there!" I had to find her, save her from that madman.

"Please, please help me, Lara." Sam begged and it actually broke my heart to hear her so scared.

"I promise, I promise, Sam." I was not going to lose her, there was no way.

"Hey! She took your radio!" Some man shouted in the background.

"Oh no!" Sam cried fearfully.

"Sam!? Sam!?" My heart began to race and I started to freak out.

"Aaah! Aaah! Help me! Please!" Sam yelled and I felt so helpless.

"Stay away from her, you bastards! Stay away!" I screamed into the radio, hopelessly trying to stop what was happening.

"No! No!" Sam cried one last time before the signal went out.

"Fuck!" How could this have happened! Dammit, I needed to find Sam right now. I'm coming Sam. I promise.

_End Flashback_

This was one promise that had to be kept I thought, as I started to head into the cavern. Sam is just such an important part of my life. She made me goofier and less serious. I was always the nerdy book girl, but Sam brought out a whole other side of me, and now she was going to be sacrificed. I couldn't let it happen, my thoughts continued as I headed in deeper. I started to hear voices, so I crept slowly behind a rock and peaked my head out.

"My brothers listen to me now. Out in the world, we were nothing." Mathias began to speak and I quickly pulled back. "But here…here we are the Solarii," I took a deep breath and readied myself, this was it, I had to do everything I could to save her. I started to carefully move closer, using the rocks as cover. "The Sun Queen's children. She brought us here for a reason. I know you want your freedom."

I finally made it, undetected, behind a closer rock like pillar. "I know you want to escape this place. But to do so, we must release our Queen. Like us, she is a prisoner."

"Sam!" I whispered to myself, she was here, still alive. She was currently bound and gagged, and my heart and head both began to pound.

"If we can free her, we free ourselves! This girl… she carries the blood of this land. She could be the key." Mathias shouted excitedly. Sam began to struggle, muffled sounds coming out of her mouth. My heart wrenched, and I tried to think of a way to stop this madness.

Mathias turned and faced Sam, "The Ritual of Flames will show us the truth!" Oh no, this was all happening to fast. A man with a torch started to head over to them.

"Himiko, you are the first and the last…Speak to us now!" Mathias shouted and gestured to the torch guy.

Before my brain could catch up to what was happening, I had already pulled my bow's string back and fired an arrow. It hit the guy with torch causing him to crumble to the ground. I could hear Sam's muffled screams, as I prepared another arrow. I was completely outnumbered, but if I could just hit Mathias…the arrow missed by inches.

My heart was racing and my body was pumping with adrenaline, but it didn't matter. Mathias's men were on me in seconds, and my back hit the cold ground. It was like everything slowed down, as the men started hitting and kicking me.

"You killed our brother! Now I'm going to kill you!"

"This is for Vladimir, outsider."

I thought it was over, and I was going to die here. I'm so sorry Sam, Roth, everyone, I had failed. I was about to pass out when Mathias shouted loudly, "Enough! Dmitri, Nikolai! Bring her to me!" My breathing was shallow, and I was in so much pain. The men took my weapons and dragged me roughly to my feet and over to Mathias. I let out a small cry of pain and they dropped me in front of him, still holding my arms.

Mathias grabbed my head roughly, forcing me to look at him, "Every creature in nature will turn and fight when its very survival is at stake. So don't think I don't understand you girl. I've just been doing this a lot longer." He dropped my head and continued his speech to his followers, "Ready yourselves brothers." He reached for a torch and I wanted to cry. "Our Queen is about to speak!"

Sam and I both began to panic, trying to get lose. "Speak to us! Himiko!

"Sam!" I cried out as Mathias dropped the torch, "No, no, no, Sam!" This can't be happening. I can't just sit hit here and watch my best friend, someone who I love so much, get burned to death. I couldn't move though.

Sam continued to struggle as Mathias yelled, "Speak to us through the flames!"

I looked up at Sam, this was all my fault. I needed her to look at me so I spoke as loud as I could "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry. Just look at me…look at me, okay?" Sam continued to struggle, but finally gave up and turned to face me. We made eye contact and my heart started to race again. I could see it in her eyes that she didn't blame me for any of this. Actually, there was just complete and utter devotion. Oh Sam, I thought it was all over when out of nowhere, a huge gust of wind blew out the flames.

What the hell was that I thought, as Sam started to slide down the log? Mathias began to speak in shock, "She…she's the one. Soon my brothers… we will be reborn! "Take her to the throne room." He turned and faced me, "Your fight is over creature." I made eye contact one last time with Sam, before they dragged me away.


	3. The Start of an Adventure

**Flashback**

_Lara's perspective_

I must have been sitting here for at least a half an hour listening to Dr. Whitman go on about how the network cancelled his T.V show. Roth was also with me, sitting there contemplating this problem. Sadly, the network was the one funding our expedition and providing the camera crew. We were going to set out to find the lost Kingdom of Yamatai, but things weren't looking promising at the moment.

"I just don't understand why they cancelled my show. I mean this expedition…what it could mean for me, uh us, and them. If I could actually…we could actually find Yamatai, it would go down in history," Whitman continued to ramble on and on.

I was normally a patient person, but to be completely honest Dr. Whitman was slightly getting on my nerves. Roth looked like he had enough of listening to the good doctor also. We needed to find the money to fund us, and I knew I had it. However, I wanted to make my own way, and show that I didn't need my family's money to make a name for myself. I want to discover something amazing, and I want to show the world that I could.

"I mean I could provide some of the money…maybe…finances are little…let's just say money is a little tight right now. What to do? I need this expedition to fix everything…all wrong," Whitman was practically mumbling to himself now.

Roth let out a sigh, "I'm going to go get some air." He got up and walked to the upper deck of the ship.

I was just about to join him, when it hit me like a ton of bricks. How stupid could I possibly be? I stood up abruptly, catching Whitman off guard.

"What is it?" he asked hesitantly. "Is something wrong Ms. Croft?"

"Please call me Lara, and actually I have an idea. I'll get back to you in a bit, okay?" I rushed out of there before he could even respond. The minute I hit the upper deck Roth turned from facing the railing to face me.

"Everything alright girl," Roth asked me with a concerned look.

I smiled at him and nodded, "Yes everything is fine. I just need to make a phone call." With that said, Roth nodded and turned back around. I headed off the ship and onto the docks as I pulled out my phone. I selected the contact and the phone began to ring, one…two…three.

"Hey you, what's up?" a familiar voice sang out cheerfully.

"Hey, you sound very chipper. In a good mood are we?" I asked playfully in return.

"Hmm well of course I am! My most favorite person ever just called me!" she continued teasingly.

"Sam!" I laughed and Sam started to join me. "On a series note I have something important to ask you."

"Lara, if you wanted to ask me out on a date, well over the phone is not very romantic so I am not sure I can accept," Sam continued keeping our conversation playful.

"Sam, as much as I love your goofiness this is really important," I stated, still with a smile on my face.

"Okay, okay sweetie I'm sorry. What's up? Is something wrong?" Sam asked finally sobering up.

"Well yes actually, so you know that the network for Whitman's show was supposed to be funding us. They cancelled his show, which means no funding, supplies, or camera crew, basically no expedition," I tried my best not to sound too disappointed, but I really wanted this.

"Well that must have got the doctor's knickers in a twist," Sam attempted to mimic my accent, and it got a chuckle out of me. "On a series note though, I'm sorry Lara. I know how much you wanted this, but I have a feeling I know where this is going."

"You are probably right, see I was thinking you could film for us, and your father could…maybe provide the funding," I really didn't like asking for things but Sam is my best friend and she understood.

Sam let out a small shout that startled me, "Yes, well hopefully yes! I'll give him a call in a minute, but how awesome would it be if I could go with you. I mean this could be huge for both of us and the best part is we could do it together! I could film you! The story on how Lara Croft's first adventure led to her name going down in archeological history!" she continued excitedly, a huge grin spread across my face. The idea of us going on an adventure together sounded amazing.

Before Sam could go on anymore though, I cut her off, "Sam! Not to rain on your parade or anything, but we still need the funding from your father."

"Right, sorry I got a little carried away. I'll call him now and give you a call back once I'm done," she sounded determined and once Sam was determined nothing stopped her.

"Okay sounds good, talk to you in a few," excitement still rang out in my voice.

"Bye," and with that Sam hung up. The next few minutes were agonizing as I attempted to find ways to distract myself. It was actually a very nice day, the sun was shining and there was a nice breeze. The smell of the ocean was always a welcomed one and I did my best to just relax a little. Today had been a bit stressful, but hopefully it would all work out, and we could maybe even leave in the next few days as planned. My phone went off, but it wasn't for a call but a text.

_Hey so I'll be at the ship soon! Can't wait to see you! Xoxo_

I smirked at the text and decided not to reply, because she would just keep me waiting anyways. I'm pretty sure she secretly loved to torment me whenever she could. I had a feeling though that the news was going to be good, so I headed back to the ship. When I arrived Roth was no longer on the deck, but I decided to stay and wait for Sam. After a little while, I could see a figure walking along the docks towards the ship. Sam's face soon became clear, so I stood up from the crate I was sitting on. Sam walked onto the ship and wrapped me up into a tight hug.

"Hey you," she said again causing me to chuckle against her.

"Hey," I smiled and pulled back looking at her with anticipation. I had a feeling Sam was going to stall as long as possible.

"So how has your day been going," she asked nonchalantly as if we were meeting up for some lunch or something.

"Sam please tell me what your dad said," I actually decided to throw in a pout seeing as Sam could hardly ever resist them.

"Hey! No fair! You know I can't say no to you when you do that," I continued to pout at her. "Okay, okay fine, I'll tell you, so he was a little hesitant at first, but I used my powers of persuasion and now he seems pretty much behind it. He just needs a little more detail on the whole expedition, which I told him you and Roth could provide."

"Yes! Thank you Sam!" I jumped and then wrapped my arms around her again.

She chuckled this time, "Of course. This totally means a lot for me and my filming too, so I'm just as excited."

"What's all the noise about?" Roth asked curiously as he and Dr. Whitman headed up the stairs and onto the deck.

I smiled at him, "Sam is going to film for us and her father is going to provide the funding, with some more details on the expedition."

"Really," Roth asked surprised. "That is amazing. Can you set us up with a meeting Sam?"

"Yes, I was thinking we could go get some food and set up a Skype call afterwards," Sam conveyed her plan.

"This is wonderful! Simply splendid! Thank you so much Ms. Nishimura," Whitman exclaimed with a little too much excitement. Sam and I meet him the other day together, which is why he knew her already. Sam nodded and before we could all head out, she pulled out a camera.

"Roth, could you take a picture of Lara and me please?" Sam asked as she handed him her camera. Of course Sam had some form of filming device on her, but the shot would be nice since the sun was starting to set.

"Sure, of course Sam," Roth replied as he took the camera from her and held it up to take the shot.

I wrapped my arm around Sam's waist, and she placed her arm around my shoulder. I chuckled again, "You would have a camera on you."

"Shut up, smile and say cheese," she whispered playfully in my ear. I rolled my eyes and giggled, and then faced Roth with a big goofy grin on my face. Sam did the same and just as Roth snapped the shot, all I could think was that this day may have started horrible but it definitely ended wonderful. I had a feeling this expedition was going to be a good one and I couldn't wait to leave, and having Sam along the way was definitely an added bonus. Soon, I smiled to myself and realized that everyone was heading off the ship.

"Are you coming Lara?" Sam asked me halfway down the stairs.

"Yes," I smiled and headed towards Sam, here I come world, to make my mark, to find adventure, maybe even make history, but the best part is that I got to do it all with my best friend.


	4. Himiko's Blood

**Hey everyone, sorry it took so long to update, I was actually on vacation but I'm back now. Thanks so much for any reviews and hope you enjoy! :) Sorry for any mistakes!**

_Sam's perspective_

My eyes slowly fluttered open but immediately closed, my head was spinning and I felt sick. It took me a minute to recall what had happened and where I was. A part of me wanted to believe that I was back at home, lying in my warm safe bed, with Lara watching some movie. It all had to be a terrible dream, right? Like a nightmare that I couldn't wake up from, because stuff like this just doesn't happen. My eyes opened fully this time, revealing the truth, no matter how hard it was to believe.

I was back in the stupid throne room, my hands and mouth were free this time, however, and I was surrounded by guards. On other circumstances, I would have loved to film this place, but being held captive pretty much put a damper on that. I decided to stay on the ground, with my eyes closed. If the guards new I had woken, they would summon Mathias, and I would just be sacrificed sooner. I was still trying to comprehend what the hell happened back in that cave. I'm glad to be alive and not a burnt corpse. I'm so grateful that Lara didn't see me burn…Lara, where was she? I opened my eyes slowly, hoping none of them would notice, and carefully looked around. She wasn't here…maybe she was with the others, I tried to tell myself to keep calm. However, I didn't know where the others were being held, if they were even still alive. My heart started racing, and all I wanted to do was get up and find her.

What if I never see her again? What if she was…dead? I was beginning to panic now, and it was getting harder to breath. I honestly felt like I was losing it, this whole situation started to crash down on me. Mathias honestly believed that I was the key to getting off this island. That I was the one he needed, searched for, yet that couldn't be right, could it? I can't explain what happened, what put the flames out, but none of it could be true. It was all just the ramblings of a madman, it had to be. My mind continued to race and eventually I ended up thinking about Lara again.

The more I thought about Lara though, the more I began to realize how capable she truly is. This place had to be heavily guarded, and yet, somehow she managed to get in. She came to rescue me, because I managed to get myself kidnapped by a lunatic. I still feel like all of this was my fault anyways. The crew wouldn't have been taken, and Lara probably wouldn't look like she had been through hell and back trying to save me. I suddenly realized that I needed to get the hell out of here. I needed to be the brave one. I wasn't bound or gagged anymore. If I could somehow find a way past the guards…but before my thoughts could go any further, a loud sound of an explosion went off.

The guards looked at each other warily but continued to stand there as if nothing had happened. A few minutes later, more sounds of explosions went off, and there were a few shouts. I finally sat up as a few guards left the room. What the hell was going on? Maybe, just maybe it was Lara, and my heart began to beat excitedly. I was honestly trying to plan my way out, since the guards were all distracted, but my thoughts and plans were shattered in an instant.

Mathias walked in yelling at the guards to go see what was happening, and only told Dimitri to stay.

He slowly made his way towards me, and I immediately stood up. Not that it made any difference, even if I could somehow take him down, Dimitri had a shotgun, and I had nothing. My heart began to race, as he came closer to me, "Hello Samantha, good to see that you are finally awake," he spoke in that same overly calm voice. I choose not to say anything but continued to back up until my back was against a pole. "I was a bit worried that you wouldn't wake up, you see, you are very important to me Samantha."

I suddenly grew a backbone and asked the question that has been bugging me since I woke up. "Where is Lara, what have you done with her," my voice came out stronger then I had expected.

"She isn't the one I need Samantha you are," he continued, "I don't think you understand. You have been chosen, Samantha. This is a great honor for you, for all of us." I shuttered at the thought, and became terrified again; he wasn't going to answer my question.

I was right and he continued to ramble on about me, "Some were beginning to doubt we'd ever find you…But here you are."

"Please," I begged. This was crazy, insane I can't be who he was looking for, there was no way. I looked up at Mathias again sharing my thoughts, "I know you think I'm something special. But I'm not. I don't want to be chosen," I was the one rambling now, needing him to understand that I wasn't the one he wanted.

Nothing was breaking through to him though and he continued his rant, "This is not about what you want. It's about what you are." He turned away from me for a second but then looked me in the eyes, "Himiko's blood runs in your veins." I couldn't hold his gaze this time and looked down, "I think you know this Samantha." He was right, I was related to Himiko but that didn't mean I was the key, it was just too crazy.

I suddenly felt a sense of courage and looked Mathias in the eyes, "You're insane, Mathias. Why are you doing this?" I asked voicing my opinions.

"You're searching for logic and reason where there is none," I looked away again, everything about him terrified me. He continued his answer, "I made the same mistake once. Back when I thought ships could reach us and planes wouldn't fall from the sky." This couldn't be true, could it, there had to be a way off of this crazy hellhole.

Without even thinking I looked at him and shouted, "I just want to go home." That was a big mistake, and Mathias's eyes darkened angrily. I felt his hands wrap tightly around my throat as he forced me against the pole. My hands instinctively went to his arms trying to push them back, but he was a lot stronger than me and I was losing oxygen fast.

"So do I girl! I've waited years for this moment…I've given my life!" he spat in my face shouting. This was probably the first time I have ever seen him lose himself. I was so scared and on top of that struggling for air, noises came out of my mouth, and I started to feel lightheaded. Before I could pass out though, Mathias threw me roughly against the ground, and I started gasping for air. I started to cough, trying to get my thoughts together but Mathias kept going, "Don't you think I've tried to get away from here? From this place! We are all trapped here. But you, Samantha, you have the power to release us! Many have given up their souls willingly for this gift!" He seriously had a screw loose if he thought I would willingly give up my soul to be sacrificed.

Before he could continue a man came in shouting, "The fires are getting worse. The other girl's vanished." The other girl, could it be Lara? Please tell me she got away and hopefully with the others.

Mathias let out a sigh and spoke his concerns, "This must be ended. Dimitri, guard her with your life." I was still on the ground as Mathias walked away, if only I could get out. Before I could even think of a plan Dimitri let out a strange gurgling sound as an arrow pierced his throat. He dropped to the ground immediately and Lara stepped out of the shadows.

My knight in shining armor, well sort of, "Lara! Oh my god, you're here. I was beginning to think I was going crazy." I stood up as quickly as I could and wrapped my arms around her tightly.

Lara hugged me back, and my heart skipped a beat, "It's okay, it's okay…" she reassured me and for once I honestly believed it. Lara sadly pulled away but kept her hands on my arms as she looked me in the eyes, "It's going to be okay." This time my heart stopped but before I could find my voice she shouted, "My weapons!" She pulled away and reached down to grab them, the loss of contact making me sad again.

It was time to pull it together Sam I thought, now was not the time. I then asked Lara an important question "How are we ever going to get out of here?"

"We need to leave before he comes back." Lara stood up as she answered me and grabbed a hold of my hand. My heart was racing again from the adrenaline and from being so close to Lara. She slowly led us around the corner into a hallway, "Whitman! Whitman! Where the hell is he?" So Whitman was here, we kept going her hand tightened against mine.

Suddenly Whitman came around the corner yelling, "Run, Lara, run!" I felt my heart drop and I began to panic.

Mathias came around the corner yelling. "Get them!"

"Run!" Whitman shouted one more time, and for a minute I actually froze.

"Back! Back into the throne room!" Lara shouted and suddenly my feet were moving again and I was running. There was a loud bang but I didn't look back. Just keep moving I told myself over and over again. I kept going until there was a loud explosion close by. I had made it across the throne room, but the place was falling apart. The wood above the entrance gave way and I shielded my eyes, Lara hadn't made it across, "Lara! Lara!" I shouted panicking. There was no way I could move any of it. Dammit, how did I get so far ahead?

"Keep going, Sam! I'll find another way out," Lara shouted over the flames and I wanted to cry. I didn't want to leave her, but there was nothing I could do. I glanced one last time and then started to run, hoping that we would both make it out of here alive, and hoping that wasn't the last time I would hear Lara's voice.


End file.
